I am proud to announce that my most recent article, Attention Legacy Artists: 6 Things You Need to Know to Recapture Your Copyrights, has been published by Billboard!

Categories: Articles, Honors and Awards, Legacy, Music Industry, Terminations, Tags: attorney, Billboard, Billboard magazine, Erin Jacobson, erin m. jacobson, estates, find a music attorney, heirs, lawyer, legacy, legacy catalogue, legacy music catalogue, los angeles, music, music attorney, music attorney la, music attorney los angeles, music business, music estates, music industry, music industry lawyer, music law, music lawyer, music lawyer la, music lawyer los angeles, music publishing, royalties, songwriter, the music industry lawyer
I am proud to announce that my most recent article, Attention Legacy Artists: 6 Things You Need to Know to Recapture Your Copyrights, has been published by Billboard!
Categories: Articles, Copyright, Music Industry, Music Publishing, Terminations, Tags: copyright, copyright terminations, Erin Jacobson, erin m. jacobson, find a music attorney, get copyrights back, heirs, inherit, lawyer, los angeles, music, music attorney, music attorney la, music attorney los angeles, music business, music industry, music industry lawyer, music law, music lawyer la, music lawyer los angeles, reclaim copyrights, song catalogs, song catalogues, songs, songwriter, songwriter heir, terminations
By: Erin M. Jacobson, Esq.
There has been a lot of buzz lately about songwriters and artists (and their heirs) reclaiming thei copyrights and striking new deals or self-administering/self-releasing. What many want to know, is who can reclaim copyrights and how?
There are certain provisions in the copyright law where, under certain circumstances, an author or that author’s heirs can reclaim copyrights that have been granted away at some time in the past. It’s a really complicated section of the law, and not all attorneys are well-versed in it, so it is important to make sure whoever you hire really knows the intricacies of filing terminations.
For purposed of this article, I’m going to go over the basics.
There are two main sections of the copyright law that apply to copyright terminations:
Who can terminate?
Some additional points that apply to terminations under both sections:
Why is the right to terminate important?
Recapturing rights and starting to exploit them again can revive older compositions or catalogs, and help them to start making money again when they’re currently lost and forgotten in the catalogs of large music publishers. Also, this increased exploitation (or an advance in a new deal) would mean more money for the authors or heirs. The decision whether to terminate must be carefully considered based on the catalog at issue as well as the situation of the authors/heirs.
I regularly work with legacy clients and their heirs to determine the best plan for the catalog and filing termination notices, if that is the best choice for the client, so please contact me if I can help you with your catalog.
Disclaimer: This article is for educational and informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice. The content contained in this article is not legal advice or a legal opinion on any specific matter or matters. This article does not constitute or create an attorney-client relationship between Erin M. Jacobson, Esq. and you or any other user. The law may vary based on the facts or particular circumstances or the law in your state. You should not rely on, act, or fail to act, upon this information without seeking the professional counsel of an attorney licensed in your state.
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Categories: Articles, Copyright, Music Contracts, Music Industry, Music Publishing, Royalties, Tags: buy, catalog, catalogue, copyright, copyrights, Erin Jacobson, erin m. jacobson, find a music attorney, heir, heirs, inherit, music attorney, music attorney la, music attorney los angeles, music business, music catalogue, music catalogue rights, music catalogue valuation, music catalogue value, music heir, music industry, music industry lawyer, music law, music lawyer, music lawyer la, music lawyer los angeles, music publishers, music publishing, recapture, royalties, sell, song catalogue, songwriter, termination
By: Erin M. Jacobson, Esq.
I see many spouses or children that inherit a song catalogue from a songwriter relative, and are not familiar with the music business or how to administer intellectual property rights of music.
Here is the first thing to do: Hire a music attorney experienced with managing catalogues and music publishing.
When I work with heirs on how to manage a catalogue they’ve inherited:
Selling the catalogue is a personal decision, it depends on whether one would rather receive royalty checks or instead receive a lump sum upfront in exchange for the catalogue. This depends the circumstances of each individual situation, both from a financial standpoint and whether the heir wants to have a continuing relationship to the catalogue.
Inherited catalogues are special for family legacy reasons, but also because they come with their own set of decisions. Many heirs have not had previous experience with the music publishing business, and either miss important milestones that would put the catalogue in a better position, or they rely on existing deals with companies that are no longer looking out for the best interests of the catalogue. Banks and other trustees often complicate matters, as well as representatives not experienced in music publishing and copyright management. Many of these personnel only look at the numbers. I personally love older music and understand the sentimental value of a catalogue beyond the income it brings in each year, as well as whether and how it can be profitable in today’s market.
Again, the first step in dealing with a catalogue you have inherited is hiring a music attorney experienced with music catalogues and who can make the right plan for your catalogue.
Disclaimer: This article is for educational and informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice. The content contained in this article is not legal advice or a legal opinion on any specific matter or matters. This article does not constitute or create an attorney-client relationship between Erin M. Jacobson, Esq. and you or any other user. The law may vary based on the facts or particular circumstances or the law in your state. You should not rely on, act, or fail to act, upon this information without seeking the professional counsel of an attorney licensed in your state.
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